Inklightning
by SilverLightninPen
Summary: Aubrey has stopped running. Why should she? They've always found her. But why do they want her? They had her for almost two years, full of running and hatred. But now that she's given up, why do they still want her?
1. Caught, Again!

-1Basta raced after the girl, screaming inaudible curses at her, like that would slow her down. They raced down the mountain sides, dodging incoming birds and bare tree branches that looked as if they hadn't been touched for years. A few times, Basta tripped on a rock or stone, which gave Aubrey an even larger lead, but Basta could always find her due to her purple punk streaks she had so foolishly gotten, thinking that would throw Capricorn and his men off. Of course it didn't. Possibly his men, but never Capricorn himself. He was the only one she feared, not even Basta scared her, for she saw through his empty threats.

After a while, Aubrey slowed down, not able to hear Basta's clumsy footsteps behind her. She didn't dare stop running until nightfall, though, for she knew how obvious she was in broad daylight. She continuously turned her head to check if Basta was close behind, which he never was, but Aubrey was sure Capricorn wasn't going to let her go that easily. Basta would drive a truck down here, bring the dogs, even recruit more men, but he wouldn't let Capricorn down because of such a foolish girl. So she kept a steady race, rarely pausing for a quick breath so she could stay as far ahead of Capricorn's village as possible.

Thoughts of her beloved Rillian kept her moving. As much as she tried to focus on the landscape ahead, her mind always ended up thinking of his long, brownish blonde hair and gorgeous deep brown eyes. The thought of him made her weak at the knees. His walk, so confident and knowing, yet loyal to his promises, and his jokes, irresistibly charming and witty. He was what made her shiver at the thought of going home, from love, not hatred.

Eventually, Aubrey stopped to find something to eat from the wildlife. She scanned her surroundings, noticing that not only were there no deer, birds or snakes, but there was barely enough food on the trees to sustain a squirrel for a day, let alone a thirteen year old girl who hadn't eaten any for more than three weeks. She had refused once Capricorn stopped letting her out of his house and the church, only in special occasions was she to be let out, due to her trying to escape. Capricorn had tried many attempts to cheer the girl up, make her eat as to not die, but she coldly refused him, for his offers never let her out of the house and church. Aubrey eventually found a half dead olive tree and picked some from it. Though they tasted incredibly sour in her mouth, she forced them down, knowing she would need the strength. She also found a stream, with bushes containing some sweet tasting berries surrounding it, and she drank from that. After Aubrey received her fill from the wildlife she rested her head against the olive tree and closed her eyes. Though she tried to fight it, she was eventually drawn into a sea of dreams of Capricorn and what he would do to her if they found her. She awoke from these nightmares many times, but Aubrey was still alive.

Aubrey awoke to the sound of a distant engine. It took her a moment to realize what was going on before she saw Basta's tired face through the large front window of the car. She raced down the path she was headed yesterday, but Basta soon caught up to her. He parked the car and she merely stopped and counted her blessings, praying for mercy from God before going back to the Devil's Den.

"What did you think you were doing, running away from us like that?" Basta asked her in a mocking tone after they were in the car. How Aubrey hadn't seen them, she would never know, but Flatnose and Rechi were also in the car with Basta. And so were the Hounds of Hell, in the back open trunk. Flatnose sat Aubrey in his lap, examining her look since he had last seen her eight months ago.

"Yeah, princess, did you think that you were of that much importance to us?" He asked as he began tracing her hourglass figure. She tried prying his hand off her waist, but he held on tight, like an old boyfriend very angry at his cheating girl.

"Why are you back? Did you find it boring in the German bases?" Aubrey asked.

"Not a damn thing happened the whole time we were there, right Rechi?"

The boy called Rechi merely nodded and replied, "Not a damn thing."

"But enough about us, sweetheart," Basta said to her, "The boss is quite disappointed in you now. He was very worried you had hurt your pretty little self."

Aubrey merely nodded, trying to pluck up the courage to go back to that village. The square alone held memories, let alone the rest of the place. As memories flooded back into her, tears escaped her eyes, and not able to control even those, she let herself cry. It wasn't the first time Basta and them had seen it, it came after an execution or she lost what little hope of escaping she had left. But she wanted these tears. She wanted, she NEEDED Basta and the rest to think she was out of hope.


	2. The Fake

-1Capricorn sat in his massive armchair awaiting the arrival of Basta, Flatnose, Rechi, and, of course, the girl. He toyed with a loose string from his blood red suit, his colorless eyes following it back and forth for what seemed like forever. He didn't know what to do. She was still rejecting them all, though she had nothing else to run to. She was alone here. Her mother had long ago died of such impudence, though they did not need her. And her father had been killed while trying to take what was rightfully Capricorn's - Aubrey. She had no siblings, no one else like her here, yet she still refused to accept that she wouldn't leave.

Capricorn pondered this until they finally entered, Flatnose holding the girl, and Basta and Rechi opened the heavy doors leading to his place. Aubrey looked tired and hungry. She didn't resist as Flatnose brought her forward. She kept her head bent down, refusing to look at him, like one of his men. He thought he heard a sob, but she looked up as Basta began to speak and she had no tears.

"We chased her down that mountain all night. She must have stopped somewhere for the night, because we found these of hers near a tree." Basta held out a bag and a leather book. Capricorn took them from his hands and looked through the book, then the bag. He scattered the contents on a nearby table. A bottled water, jeans, black snake t-shirt, tennis shoes and a velvet box were among the pile, other than a tiny key and pencil. Capricorn used the key to open the velvet box, which contained a topaz necklace and a diamond ring. Almost as if an engagement ring.

"Give these back to her," he handed Basta the leather book and the bag, including al its contents except the velvet box and its contents. He turned to Rechi. "Go and shine my car. And get Damon to drive me in an hour or so." The boy nodded his head and headed off. "Flatnose and Basta, we owe Holder's family a little visit now, don't we?" They needed no further instructions and soon set off to the high school a few miles away.

Capricorn motioned for the girl to sit down on the arm of his chair and sat with her like that until he made a decision. "Why do you run from us? We've always caught up, soon. Is it really worth the punishment, every time?"

Aubrey looked up at him, tears appearing in her eyes. "Why won't you let me go?" She whispered. "I hate life here. I don't see why you need me. If I could just see my friends for one day, I wouldn't ever leave again. I promise."

"Why would I let you go for one day? I know you wouldn't come back. You know just as well as I do that that would be no good."

She sighed, and before she knew it Capricorn had just put her in his lap, treating her like a father and his young, confused child. And that was the closest thing she had to a father. But that was NOT how the story went. "I don't know why you hate us so much."

She looked away. "You killed my family."

"A family that didn't believe you. A family that never trusted you. They thought you were just a rambling child, and what you said was correct only by chance. They didn't appreciate how long you kept them alive. They thought that they did it all themselves, and we were exactly like a book by pure coincidence. They were holding you down from your true potential, they were the heavy books weighing you down from ever making something of yourself. Do you really like what you see a year and a half ago, fights all the time, never knowing whether or not you've been rat out by your own family, and the guilt of letting them get themselves into such danger?"

Aubrey broke down into tears, quietly. She felt someone stroking her hair, but she didn't care. She didn't care that she was sitting next to the man she hated so very much, letting him see her cry, and even showing remorse of running away. Because this was her life. Endless phone calls, funny pictures with friends, and laughing at her own stupid mistakes had been swept away with strict order, no opinions, and lies. And the biggest of it all was that she had just given up any resentment of the Black Jackets and their fierce leader. She was one of them.


	3. Let Go, How Can He Believe?

-1Aubrey eventually fell asleep crying, so Capricorn had Damon carry her to the backseat of the car with him for a drive around the mountain ranges. He brought her bag, for she would need a change of clothes. The trip usually lasted two or three days. They would sleep at the bases.

It only took ten minutes in the car for Aubrey to awake. Capricorn was observing the necklace and ring from her bag. He noticed her lift her head from the neck rest and look his way. He stared at the jewelry for a little longer, wondering what they were for.

"Where did you get those?" She asked.

"Where did _you _get these? They look very expensive, very hard to acquire in such forgotten places like this."

"The necklace was from my Grama."

"And the ring?"

Aubrey toyed with the hem of her shirt before sighing and giving a brief answer. "It was from a guy recently. He thought that he could earn my fancying with such a thing, but he was wrong."

It was silent in the car for a while, until Aubrey broke the silence by whispering a chat.

_Over the river and through the woods_

_To Capricorn's village we go._

_Over the river and through the woods_

_We'll never be back, you know._

_So grab all your torches_

_And tools from your porches_

_And lets burn down the lot._

_Over the river and through the woods_

_It's Capricorn's village we leave._

_Over the river and through the woods_

_Yes, I cannot believe._

She noticed the two men looking at her in astonishment and shrugged and said, "Old internet chat room's chant. It was shut down two years ago due to spamming and abuse."

They sat like that for hours, until the mind numbing question that had been eating away at Aubrey the whole time just slipped out. "Where are we going? What are we doing?"

"Punishment, of course. We need you to meet someone."

"Like who, someone?"

"Like a you, someone."

Aubrey did not understand that in the slightest, but she asked no more about it. She decided to examine the last two years. Oh, what had happened.

**FLASHBACK**

"**Aubrey, someone's at the door for you!" Dana called to her daughter.**

**"Who is it, Mom?"**

**"Someone you'll like to see!"**

**Aubrey checked her hair one last time, reapplied some lipgloss, and raced down to the door. She was happy to find that it was Rillian, holding a bouquet and a large smile. She hugged him and gave him a slight kiss as she thanked him. She got her colorful sweatshirt out and told her parents goodbye. They wished her and Rillian a fun night out, and told Aubrey to be back home by ten p.m. Rillian led her out the door, blindfolded, being secretive about their destination…**

"He was my first date," she began, "And so incredibly wonderful. He could play with fire beautifully, and he could momentarily form fire into these incredible shapes. We went to a park, for the 4th of July cookout, and we met up with 'Liv and Will, 'Vana and Mitch. We had so much fun. We 'pimped out' the ladies room, and had a great chase with the cops for that. We laughed about that for hours. And while rock climbing, well, lets just say no one could keep their hands on the rocks after we were done. They say we put cooking oil on it, but I think baby oil did the trick.

"Aside from that, we met up with some old buddies and hung out at the fireplace where Rillian showed us the most amazing things. I could swear he was better than Dustfinger, but I don't underestimate. Anyways, when he got me home," Aubrey felt like she would choke, "He was so incredibly sweet to my parents. He didn't even rat me out for the almost jumping off the dam. I was so transfixed after he left, which was shortly lived. But I called and texted everyone I knew about it before…"

Capricorn listened to her story and hated the ending. He could see it, though, her voice made a silk out of a simple date. She had the gift, he knew it. But she didn't even know it was possible.

It was nightfall, and soon they stopped at a Southern plantation looking place. In fact, it could have once been. Capricorn and Damon acted as if this was a very familiar place, and Aubrey was sure it was for them. Capricorn walked with Aubrey's wrist in hand, and before they got out of the car, he whispered to her, "I hope you don't try to escape now that we are supposed to be getting along, or else I might find myself having to come home with a very broken girl." Aubrey nodded, not willing to run this time. It was always a waste.

A man came out of the house looking very surprised, like it was his master's job to call every time he was coming, so his men could then clean up their act before he saw their games. "H-h-hello, ma-master. What a w-wonderful surprise. W-who is the girl?"

"This is the legendary Aubrey Brown, but finally tamed. Ready to give us what we have been waiting for."

"Finally," the man snorted.

"But, it took one last runaway try for her to realize that it's a waste."

"So what should we do with her, boss?"

"Something memorable. Be creative. But I don't want her hurt too badly. She really is quite pretty when she isn't struggling out of Basta's arms, isn't she, Judas?"

"Quite a girl. Might want to keep her, wouldn't we?"

"Until death she will stay with us now, Judas. Now, if you don't mind, we need to be shown to our room. I still don't trust her alone, though as shocking as it may sound." With that, Judas clumsily pinched her cheek, like Cockrell used to do. "Save the punishment until after dinner. But, we will be leaving tomorrow, so don't try to lock her in a cell for days without any to eat. We don't want her to look anorexic, and I don't have that kind of time. Once we get back to our home, we have a quite a few preparations to make."

"For what?" Aubrey asked, but both the men just studied her, acting unaware that she had just spoken.

"Well, then, you must rest. Come in, we will be ready for dinner in an hour," Judas finally said. He led the two of them into the large house, probably the Big House, where the main family lived. The walls were a shade of ivory with red roses with dark thorns curving around it. There were dead flowers hanging down throughout the halls, and the curtains were pulled tightly shut, probably to keep unwanted visitors from seeing the things they did inside of the damned house. Judas led them up a spiral staircase made of cherry hardwood. It was very beautiful, yet Aubrey found it disturbing. She knew all the terrible things Capricorn and his men did, and she was positive that without their master constantly watching over their backs that they did even more. Aubrey shuddered. They were mad men, crazy. But she was one of them now. Or so they thought.

He opened the door at the very end of the hall to reveal a room with one large king sized bed covered in dried blood looking silk sheets and two bunk beds just large enough to fit a fifteen year old covered in black wool blankets. The walls were blood red and the floor was a very dark hardwood surface. There were vases throughout the room, filled with countless kinds of gorgeous flowers. Aubrey thought that they were supposed to be comforting, but she found it eerie, just like Capricorn's other room back at the other base. Judas simply sat three suitcases on the floor and shut the door, probably hurrying to get the men and maids ready for Capricorn and his 'guest'. Aubrey recognized one of them, to be hers, and she opened it to look for her book. She was in great need of one right now. She found one, titled 'The Supernaturalist' by Eoin Colfer, and immediately began to read. It had been forever since she had started it, she was confused to find Cosmo looking into the eyes of Mona, almost ready to kiss…

Capricorn saw that she was reading, and calmly snatched the book from her hands.

"I thought we were getting along now."

"That doesn't mean that you should be reading."

"Why? What is going to happen? Really, I don't know why reading is so bad."

Capricorn simply acted as if he hadn't heard her, and examined the book. He remembered it from when he had tried to have Darius read out one of those Parasites, but he merely read out a confused Bartoli baby, which Basta and Cockrell had a very good time getting rid of him.

"You could very well get a good idea of escape from this book."

Aubrey put on a hurt face and tried to sound confused. "So you really trust me that little?" She waited a moment and went on. "I guess I can't blame you. I've tried to run away too many times."

Aubrey waited ten minutes of silence, and then decided to ask him. "Why do you need me? What makes you so intent upon having me here?" She found that she was whispering this.

"You will see."


	4. The Diary

-1Soon, Judas came to fetch them for dinner, and he took them this time into a very huge building that reminded her of Capricorn's church. It had the same features, and Aubrey was convinced that he intended it to be that way. Capricorn still had a tight grip on Aubrey's arm, to her dismay. He sat down at the end of the table, the girl right next to him. The maids he lain the tables out with food so people could grab them from their bowls. It reminded her of Harry Potter. Aubrey only drank water while Capricorn fancied himself in half a bottle a champagne. Aubrey was very nervous about her punishment. In the past, it consisted of being locked in her room for a full four days, another time Cockrell was to teach her a lesson himself. At that time, she had her fire, very bright, and he never really got to the point of teaching. He did, however, earn a large scar on his leg that wouldn't leave for a very long time. Aubrey had heard tales about this base, and she knew they had much more brutal punishments.

Dinner ended far too soon. Judas whispered something into Capricorn's ear, and he looked like he was pondering it for a while, and he simply nodded. Judas took the girl's arm and dragged her to a smaller house that could have been a slave's quarters. It had a very beaten up feel, the walls and floor were bare, and the only thing in the room was a bed and a desk and chair. Aubrey found the place to feel quite homey, though that feeling would soon disappear. Judas told Aubrey that she would see what happened to traitors.

"Sit there for a moment, I will be back in a moment," he grumbled as he closed the door. Aubrey examined the room closer. It smelled of raw meat and there seemed to be ashes in the drawers she looked through. _Why would there be ashes in a desk? That makes absolutely no sense. _She nodded her head, trying to understand. As she opened the last drawer, Aubrey found a locked notebook, and she thought it very curious. Using a hairpin from her hair, she pulled out the rubber band and tried to open the lock with the tool. It worked. She opened it, and found that it was a diary.

_Monday, July 1, 2008_

_Capricorn_

_Today, Basta, Flatnose and Cockrell set out for the girl's house. We finally received the flight tickets from Rillian, not too soon I'm afraid, but here never the less. The departure was delayed by Basta's stupid search for St. John's Wart, which he was too superstitious to remove from his own doorstep. I am not very confident in Basta to control his temper, which is why the other two are accompanying him. I trust that Flatnose will keep the girl under control, but with these foolish men you would never know. I just depend on Rillian's information to be reliable._

_As I have stated before, he is to take her somewhere for a few hours, and return her to her house to find Cockrell and the rest waiting there, her family, I have decided, will be killed by them. She will witness their deaths, and know that my patience is at its end. Of course, he is also to bring one of her friends, to use as bait to do as we wish. I hope that she cooperates, for in Rillian's descriptions, she is very quiet and does as she's told, unless confronted by a friend. I am happy to know that she will be done trying to harm Rillian by the time we have her here._

_It will take Basta and the others a day to arrive to Americka, as they call it, and another day to arrive in Hixon, Tn. God knows if they will find it, what with their idiotic ways. I despise all of them, why I keep them I don't know. But as the Adderhead once told me, "… it takes an army to raise a civilization. A strong one. An army that doesn't know right from wrong. Therefore, you and me must put up with such imbeciles to keep our reigns…" But it still feels so biodegrading, I can almost feel my brain dissolving in one of their mindless discussions…_

Aubrey stopped reading. She knew how it went. She knew how it all turned out. She quietly slipped the lock back into place and put the book into her bag. She didn't care if Capricorn ever found it on her, but she would hold on forever. For his plan went terribly, terribly wrong.

Her face must have been very pale by the moonlight as Judas led her and a group of other men down a darkened alleyway because he was continuously looking at her, looking nervous, as if he thought he had done something quite wrong. They eventually stopped at a tiny looking cottage. Aubrey already knew how this went. She was immediately reminded of the story of the old woman dying of the curses she screamed at Capricorn's men. They obviously did that sort of thing here, too. Judas held her back by her arms and two men went inside the cottage, soon coming out, pulling a confused looking child out with them. She looked about eleven, with long, red hair and brown eyes. She was beautiful, with a tiny white tank top on and a pair of tiny pink exercise shorts. No. Aubrey knew what was happening. And she would do anything to make sure it didn't happen. Not again.

"No!" She screamed. "Let her go!"

"Why should we?" Judas whispered. "This is your punishment, remember? No time to rethink a new one." Judas nodded to the men, one of which pulled a knife out of his pocket.

He was obviously the Basta of the group.

He held it to her throat, and, asked Judas, "Is the girl watching?"

With that Judas pushed her head to face the shocked girl. "Yes, Julio. Hinter, you have the pleasure."

The man called Hinter took the knife from Julio and simply began to dig his knife into her throat.

"No! No! Please, please! Stop it!" Aubrey continuously shouted. The men merely laughed. Hinter took a while to be done with the girl, frequently cutting again and again. Finally, after what seemed what felt like an eternity, she dropped down dead. Aubrey continued sobbing, trying to wrench herself from Judas's grasp, but that only made him laugh and hold harder. After they burned the body, Judas whispered very softly in her ear, "That's what happens when you leave. That's like taking from Capricorn something rightfully his, and we wouldn't want to do that now, would we? Now, lets go back home."

Home. Home. No. they would never be a part of her home.

But they were all she had. And she wouldn't kill another child just to try to prove that.

And she would stay with them. Capricorn, Basta, Flatnose, Cockrell, Judas, Julio and Hinter. There was no point. How could she ever escape?

Why was Capricorn so reluctant to let her read The Supernaturalist?


	5. Flashbacks

"Aubrey, why is Rillian back?" Travis, her father, called.

"He's back?" Aubrey asked, sounding surprised.

"Well, open the door, he must have something to say," her mother called. "Maybe he forgot something."

Aubrey unlocked and opened the door to find a distracted Rillian. "Are you okay? Did you forget something? Come on inside." Aubrey welcomed Rillian in to find two of the black clad men she had been dreaming of.

"A-are these your family?" She asked nervously. The smaller of the men put on a cruel smile and limped to the door. The other one looked as if he had broken his nose years ago and never had it repaired.

"Yes," the limping man said, "You can consider us family." Rillian looked down at his feet, as if ashamed, but when he looked up he had a large grin.

Aubrey screamed for her parents and tried to shut the door, but the bulky man blocked her way with his foot. "Now, we just arrived. Why would we want to leave so soon?" Her parents came in from the hallway, Travis with a small shovel ready to strike, Dana holding a heavy book. When they saw the men at the door, they immediately dropped their weapons. How could they fight? Aubrey was sure that even the limping man could fight past his limp.

"Basta," the huge one called to the car, "It looks like the whole lot of them is here. Just like the boss wanted." A man came walking in, he too wearing the usual black attire, but a white undershirt. She noted that Rillian was wearing that now instead of his irresistible large baggy pants and sweatshirt. The four men forced them into their living room, and Aubrey continuously asked herself, _What's going on? What has Rillian done? Why have I dreamt of them? _The men sat them down on dining room chairs and the man called Basta tied her parents to the chairs. The man with a limp ordered Rillian to hold Aubrey back and make sure she didn't interfere with the executions.

"What the hell are you doing?" Travis shouted. "Let me go, God dammit!"

"I'll call the cops, I'll have the neighbors call the police on you, you cretins!" Dana stuttered.

"Well," Basta said, "We'll just have to make this go by very fast. Flatnose, you shoot the man, and Cockrell, you the woman." The two men went to their targets, grinning non stop. The were almost ready to shoot their victims when they heard police sirens in the background.

"What did you do, you little witch?" The man called Cockrell growled at Dana.

"Nothing, nothing, I swear!"

"Your promises mean nothing to us," Basta replied, ready to shoot her.

"If you idiots don't shut it they'll change their route and come here due to all the screaming and gunshots!" Aubrey screamed. All heads turned on her, the men examining her for what was like the first time they had ever seen her. Rillian tried to cover her mouth with his hands, but Travis wouldn't allow it.

"Get your lying hands off my daughter, you bastard!"

"Well, Pops," Rillian said, "What will you do if I don't? What will you do if I do rape her? Because, as far as I can see, you're the one tied to a chair about to be shoot."

"We need to leave. We'll finish them off before we get to Capricorn's village," the man known as Flatnose said. "He won't know whether we killed them here or there."

With that, Basta untied the two distraught parents and led all them out the door. It all seemed to spin past Aubrey, her father's curses that used to sting her though they were aimed at someone else, her mothers desperate prayers, so long since she had ever prayed, she was still fixated on Rillian. _What did he do? He lied. Why? She had trusted him so much. Too much._

They rode down to San Francisco, non stop. It took nearly five days to reach the air port. Aubrey's father quietly showed the family the landmarks of his former home. None of the family slept, for they were all too afraid. The men kept a close watch on Aubrey, a few times she had tried to open the door for an escape on a slow, crowded highway, but they always found her out before she could. Flatnose eventually found how to lock the doors and windows, and the family felt totally cut off from the world.

Aubrey looked for the courage the whole time, and finally decided to ask. "Where are you taking us? Why did you try to kill Travis and Dana? Who is this boss of yours, and why have I dreamt of you before?"

Basta, who was sitting right beside her, found that a hilarious set of questions. "Are we supposed to be psychics or something? I don't know why you dream about us. Hell, maybe you find us to be an attractive group of men," he said, and the lowered his voice to a whisper, "Or maybe you've read about us."

Aubrey immediately awoke to find herself in the stay room with Capricorn again. He was typing something on his keyboard that must have been brought up during the night. Aubrey got down from her bottom bunk and went into a closet and changed her clothes. It was small and cramped with old dresses and such, but she made her way in finally. Her hand brushed against her old scar on her stomach. It was faint, almost as much as Dustfinger's scars.

"Get her! Get the girl!" Basta shouted.

"Where'd she go?" Asked Flatnose, looking confused.

"Inside the building, where else you idiot? Go and get her before she gets away!" Basta called.

Flatnose started trying to go after her, but soon Basta went running after her. He fled up the stairs, watching for her purple hair. He thought he lost her a few times, and the last time, he found she was right in front of him.

"No you don't, sweetheart!" He hissed into her ear. He grabbed her waist and tried to make her stop struggling.

"Let go!" She screamed, trying to push him away. His knife left a long scar on her stomach. It wasn't deep, but it still hurt never the less. Aubrey collapsed on the floor, writhing in pain. Basta watched for a moment, worrying what Capricorn would do if he found that Basta had hurt the girl. Eventually, he just decided not to let the girl know that she wasn't to be harmed. She'd keep her mouth shut if she thought she was of no use.

Basta pulled the girl up and she didn't hesitate to go with him. He whispered in her ear, "Now, we don't want to hurt you, but if you keep running like this we may just have to." The girl only nodded, and Basta felt some small dose of pity. He hauled the girl back to the car to find the two parents screaming about their daughter.

"Maybe if you raised her to do as she was told she wouldn't have gotten herself hurt," Basta mumbled to them. They tried inspecting the girl, but she merely pushed her parents away. She sat in the back of the car facing the way they came from, almost as if wishing her way back home. The man called Flatnose walked over and sat a little way away. She ignored his presence, as if her imagination had a more pleasant looking face, which it surely did.

She eventually looked him in the eyes and tried asking again, "Where are you taking us? Why are you trying to kill Travis and Dana, and not me? And who is this boss of yours?"

Flatnose merely replied, "The boss needs your assistance."

Aubrey pulled a red and black Flyleaf tank top over the scar and a pair of faded and torn jeans on. She dipped her fingers in the bottled water and washed her face with that, and tried cleaning her hair with it. She ran her fingers through her hair to get out the knots and finished straitening it with a comb. Aubrey slipped on her tennis shoes and came out looking very good, especially considering that she hadn't seen a shower in two days.

Capricorn noticed her as she came out. He stood from his chair and shut down the laptop, walking towards Aubrey. She walked back, feeling nervous.

"Are you that afraid of me?" He asked, grinning. He knew she was scared, unsure, and not willing to be his yet. "Do you wish to run again?"

"Why would I? It's always a waste." _Or that's what I want him to think._

_Or that's what she wants us to think._


End file.
